The visit to Sengottai a few years ago was the last time I visited the old village. It was not a village anymore, with most modern urban services that we take for granted. There were refrigerators at homes! Some homes had cable TV connections, and a few had dish antennas on the roofs. People walked around with cell phones. Scooters (Vespas) buzzed next to me almost knocking me off the road. Some homes had also been updated and upgraded to include parking spaces for their cars.
Any lingering doubt on its status as a village was removed when all of a sudden I saw people rush out of their homes with plastic bags full of stuff. And then I saw a small trash collection truck enter the street. Grandmother's village had a trash collection service?
I do not recall trash being generated at home when paatti (grandmother) was alive. There was plenty of dirt and dust that the maid swept away twice a day and mopped every morning. But, there was no trash.
Such a trash-less life was possible because there was very little material consumption back when Sengottai was a village. There were no packaging materials to get rid of, and no plastic bags and spoons to throw away.
Whenever I visited, I ran errands for patti, which is why I remember well how things were. Even the grocery shopping. I would hand the list to the grocer. I would also hand over the stainless steel containers for the oils that were on the list. Dal and spices were packed in old newspaper sheets when he delivered the grocery items. There was no plastic to be thrown away.
But, life had changed in the village. Dal and spices and oils came in prepackaged quantities. Sachets, as they called them in the old country. Every grocery purchase generated plastic bags, big and small. Coffee and tea at the roadside stalls were sold in plastic cups. People bought carbonated drinks that were in plastic bottles. Plantain and jack chips came in plastic packets. And more. Trash was being generated every single day and, of course, there was then a need for trash collection services.
There was also very little organic waste back in the old days when I used to spend time with patti. Without a refrigerator at home in near-equatorial conditions meant buying vegetables and fruits practically every other day. Because potatoes are more tolerant than most other vegetables, they were stored in a dark corner and were often the option if a guest showed up un-announced--after all, those were also the days before emails and telephones, and relatives did knock on the door without a heads-up. Almost always, nothing was ever wasted or thrown away.
A while ago I came across a report that included a few practical tips on ways in which we could shop and eat with our health in mind. Like:
- When we shop less often, we may be less likely to buy fresh food because it spoils quicker.
- We tend to buy more in bulk, bringing home more food than we need.
- Our cupboards and pantries become full of food, encouraging us to eat when we are not hungry.
- We’re overwhelmed by choice in large stores, potentially making us more susceptible to marketing tactics and displays that encourage impulse purchasing decisions.
If you re-read those bullet-points, you will agree with me that it is all common sense. People buy a dozen apples because it is cheaper by the dozen, but then end up dumping three or four apples into the trash because, hey, there are only so many apples a man can eat. Having all kinds of sweets and savories at our disposal is nothing but a way for the devil to tempt us into eating the wrong things at the wrong time. My patti could have easily provided all that advice for free!
We might live in cities. But, if we want to live healthy lives, maybe we could, should, think about how to live the old Sengottai life.
Click here for more tips on how to go zero-waste at the grocery store.
About the photograph: I clicked this during a morning walk more than 15 years ago. It is the road to Puliyarai, which is an even smaller village by the foothills of the Western Ghats.
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